Holding Anger on a Very Short Dog Leash

December 6, 2013 8:21 am

Dangerous energy

Mayor Cedric Glover controls the balance of Anger and Rage as he weighs his choices the next few days. Anger can be a constructive emotion when we see an injustice and our anger helps bring us to correct that injustice. Anger is the electric generator constructively harnessed. Rage, however, is the evil mirror of anger. Rage is the violent erupting volcano spewing molten lava on all, benefiting none through widespread destruction.

The SDPA (Shreveport Dog Park Alliance) is an alliance of citizens who feel true and righteous Anger at the actions of Shreveport’s mayor. As a united group, the alliance channeled constructive energy in a manner they felt was responsible. Never has the group been obtuse in action or purpose. No citizen joined this alliance with the thought of personally benefitting from the clearly established goal of adding an off-leash dog park to the city inventory of public parks all citizens would enjoy.

Potentially constructive energy

Unlike a volcanic eruption, rage is controllable. However, the time to act is before the molten outburst begins, because once it is in motion, we lack good judgment necessary for control. Such was the tipping point for all initial actions of the alliance. However, the failure to break through by each action of the alliance – working with the city council and the state district court to communicate with Shreveport’s mayor, anger may be tainted by rage.

Legacy: a Dog Park…

Preventive actions consist of training ourselves to react with restraint when a provocative event occurs, even if we feel we are right and the other party is wrong. We can practice restraint by responding in a soft voice, by keeping silent, or by walking away from the situation and allowing for a “cooling off” period. Nothing over more than a year and a half or wrangling has worked, and the alliance now finds itself at another crucial point in attempting to reach out to Mayor Glover.

RAGE or Frustration?

Rage feeds upon itself, and if we can stifle rage at its very onset, when it is still controllable, it is akin to smothering a small fire by depriving it of oxygen. Failure to stifle rage may result in destructive, unmanageable conflagrations, and so it is with a fire out of control.

The overriding emotion may not be rage (so very strong) but more total frustration at the machinations of Glover in going against a unanimous vote by the City Council to move forward with this dog park. The City Council overrode the Mayor, a natural theme of a legislative branch of government in accepting responsibility for their duty under the citizen-approved city charter. Checks and balances limit the Mayor’s power on everything, even uncontroversial matters.

See it coming?

The dog park seems to have become Glover’s legacy, as arguments found here have been put forward ad infinitum. Of all the controversies ever found on this blog, the dog park issue has driven readers and writers beyond what many call reasonable limits. Yet, measuring the pattern of Mayor Glover’s external factors of questionable rationale required investigation. In all our detailed searching of legal writing and legislative policies, we have found NO clear basis for basic arguments put forward by Glover.

The next few days may drive anger toward rage, as a very uncomfortable threshold has been passed. We practice restraint in responding to all provocations, yet others prefer we should break things that would be difficult to mend. Perhaps there will be an honest detailed option made that will allow these simmering emotions to fade. Every balloon floated to date has been a false hope shielding insincere rhetoric.